>> "bbc world news" is presented by kcet, los angeles. funding for this presentation is made possible by -- the freeman foundation of new york, stowe, vermont, and honolulu, the newman's own foundation, the john d. and catherine t. macarthur foundation, and union bank.

>> union bank has put its financial strength to work for a wide range of companies, from small businesses to major corporations. what can we do for you? >> and now "bbc world news." it is question time as the bbc talks to the british prime minister in front of a young audience. britain's top lawyer testifies about the iraq war. why did he change his mind? world powers pledged to bolster yemen's government. >> we are counting down to president obama's first state of the union address. we will have analysis later in the program. >> a warm welcome, "bbc world

news" broadcast on pbs in america and around the globe. lessons from the meltdown, the world economic forum opens, calling for a rethink of capitalism. and healing the wounds, the children of haiti, air lifted to new york. hello. could the afghans president's plans to offer talks and money to the taliban not undermine the freedoms won by the afghan people? tommy karzai has been defending himself against accusations ahead of thursday's london conference on afghanistan. britain's prime minister gordon brown answered questions from afghan and british students and defended his deployment of british troops.

our world affairs correspondent was there. >> president karzai arrives in london knowing that he has repair work to do on his reputation and that of his government. last year's afghan elections were widely seen as flawed by widespread corruption. at the same time, more western troops than ever were killed or injured in the war against the taliban. was it worth the price, one student asked? >>. is it shoulders have been fighting in afghanistan at nine years, -- british soldiers have been fighting in afghanistan nine years, practically have my life. will it get any better or will my children be asking me the same questions? >> i think the first thing to say it is we had to take action in 2001 after the bombing of new york, the knowledge that al

qaeda was operating from afghanistan, the help that was given by the taliban government. the question is, how can we keep our students save and how can the rest of the world keep itself the safe if al qaeda was free to roam as it did in afghanistan? >> i want to ask about corruption and afghanistan. >> this question did not go away. for many, one student said it was a bigger problem than the lack of security. president karzai said he was already fighting it. >> we have invigorated anti- corruption activities. >> the british prime minister once described afghanistan well. >> the law has to be stronger and the penalty is harsher. it is also a question of making

sure that that aid gets through to people in a non corrupt way. we have a system of monitoring that includes the world bank and other institutions that aren't looking carefully to make sure the money gets to its destination -- that are looking carefully to make sure the money gets to its destination. >> today, finally, an attempt at mutual warmth. >> i found the prime minister to be extremely kind, with whom i have excellent working relations. >> president karzai is trying to rebuild his country, and we have to support him. >> it is a necessary show of unity, but each knows that public support for the war is fragile and needs to be sustained. britain's former attorney general stood by his decision to declare the invasion of iraq

legal. lord goldsmith was questioned at the iraq inquiry in london and told the inquiry he gave the final go-ahead after a series of discussions with american and british politicians. >> february, 2003, the kuwaiti desert, on the border with iraq, british soldiers were waiting. in london, lord goldsmith, then the attorney general, knew he had to come to a view that the invasion of iraq would be lawful. in july, 2002, he told the inquiry how he gave tony blair on welcome advice about his dialogue with george w. bush. >> i did not want there to be any doubt that the prime minister could have the view that he agree with president bush somehow without going back to the united nations. >> then it changed.

in february, 2003, lord goldsmith visited washington, meeting condoleezza rice and other members of the bush administration. by the time he returned, he believed war was justified. on march 17, he gave his authority for war, reporting his conclusion to the cabinet, but there was no cabinet discussion. >> i recall telling the cabinet there is another point of view and this is the conclusion i have reached, and then the discussion on the legality simply stopped. >> what of the media reports that it was pressure from tony blair that forced lord goldsmith to change his mind on the war? >> it was alleged that you were pinned to the wall, who allegedly had performed a pincer movement on you and told you what belair wanted.

would you like to comment on that? >> absolutely complete and utter nonsense. >> it was hours of discussion about the wording of the u.n. resolution which lord goldsmith became convinced after the full legal justification for innovation. in nigeria, the senate and cabinet are at loggerheads over the future of the president. he has been out of the country two months, receiving medical treatment and saudi arabia. cabinet ministers insist he is capable of performing his duties and should remain in office. the senate wants to know more about his health. shares of toyota have fallen sharply on news of its suspending of eight american models of the vehicles. next month, they are suspending production at north american plants. they recall 2.3 million cars

with faulty accelerator pedals. 2009 was the worst year the industry has seen in terms of demand for scheduled flights. the international air transport association said it was the biggest decline since 1945. political and financial leaders from around the globe have promised to work together to combat rising islamic extremists and in yemen. u.s. secretary of state hillary clinton said military action alone would not be enough and the u.s. would work with yemen to promote human rights, build democratic institutions, and combat corruption. i>> the delegates here will feel they have gone some way in addressing the underlying problems in yemen that is causing it extremism. hillary clinton talked about

the indicators in yemen, saying we are here as your friends, yemen's friends, and there was a little bit of a rebuke, they had to stop corruption and address a number of points that would include the economy and its crucial situation. in just a few hours, president barack obama will deliver his first state of the union address. with unemployment at 10% and a bulging deficit, the speech is expected to be dominated by economic issues. he really has to pull some tricks out of the back here? >> it will not be easy. at the last democratic president, bill clinton, said it was all about the economy. president obama needs to show that he feels the pain of those who fear losing their homes and

jobs and health care. we brought together two washington observers. thank you for joining us. patrick, what sort of president will we see tonight? >> i think his choice is between being the obama of 2009 who played to the very liberal party, spending, borrowing, printing money, emphasis on health-care reform, versus the candidate from to decimate it was attempting to be something for everyone, more moderate in his language and prescriptions. i think he will choose to go back to the obama of 2008, appeal to middle america, independent voters, i.e. those people in the middle of the country who need focus on the jobs and the economy. >> what do you agree, he has to get away from the base? >> i think that is right, there

was a fundamental misreading of the last election, where the obama administration solid as moving to the left. the reality was it was a rejection of the bush administration, not a fundamental change in america, and that has got him into trouble with the new spending and the fight over health care. he will use this occasion to try to move back to the center, maybe pick a few fights. >> there is a playbook out there. there is a dick morris-bill clinton playbook. bill clinton, when republicans in 1994 won congress back, had a choice. he had also been going down the health care path, and thanks to dick morris's advice, he chose to be above and beyond his party and cut deals with republicans and recognize where the country stood at that time. >> if he goes back to the bill

clinton playbook, surely democrats will say, you were different, you are transformational, you were different, what happened? >> he is different, which will make it more difficult. bill clinton was a moderate southern governor. he was still basically in the center of the country, to the right of the democratic party. barack obama is a senator, legislator by trade, and on the left wing of his party. it will be very hard for him to move to the center. >> they also want hear about national security, the fight against terrorism. will we hear about foreign policy? what will the tone be? >> the tone will be explanatory, trying to explain to the american people why the new strategy on afghanistan. i think he will trumpet the success in iraq, the forecast success, the white house is no longer forecast -- not no longer focused on that. i think you talk about terrorism

and its potential to impact domestically because americans are concerned about terrorism, but they're concerned at home rather than around the globe. >> you think it will be domestic? >> you will hear about foreign policy, but it will mostly be a laundry list of domestic initiatives, most of them fairly small, targeted to the middle class, designed to show that he can achieve things for the average worker. >> thank you both very much. we will all be watching as the speech unfolds, and i will also be tweeting as the speech comes through. >> thanks for being with us on "bbc world news." still to come -- apple presents its latest creation. first, the north and south

korean militaries have exchanged fire along the disputed western sea border. officials in seoul say the north fired several shells into the sea, controlled by the south, and then south korean forces returned fire. the north said it was part of a military drill. >> the south korean government has already sent a message of protest to p'yongyang. at home, it has been making its concern clear to journalists. >> the artillery firing is an illegal act, and we call on north korea to stop immediately. >> as the first 30 artillery shells splashed into the sea, the plumes of water were visible from south korean coastal gun positions. when hundred shots described as a warning were fired in response

-- 100 shots described as a warning were fired in response. it is interpreted as another example of north korea's strategy of increasing tension to win diplomatic concessions. the western maritime boundary which north korea has long disputed has been the scene of a deadly confrontation in the past. last year in november, the navy's fought a brief gun battle that was reported to have killed one north korean sailor. in this latest incident, there are no reports of damage or casualties. the latest pictures from pyong and showed nothing unusual and the government has issued a statement describing the artillery firing as part of an annual drill. but there could be more to come. north korea's warning to shipping of the west coast earlier this week remains in force until the end of march.

the latest headlines on "bbc world news" -- on the eve of the london conference in afghanistan, the british prime minister and afghan president have to find it a decision to bring the taliban into the political mainstream. and burton's attorney general has denied he was under pressure by fellow ministers to change his mind over whether the invasion of iraq was legal -- britain's prime minister. the economic forum has been dominated by arguments over how to regulate the financial sector to prevent a repeat of the financial crisis. it is complained by the banks that it would hamper economic recovery. >> the cracks and the ice have begun to show. there is a divide between those calling for deep financial reform and those arguing against it. under particular scrutiny, the role of the world's moneymaking

institutions. the clashes began first thing while some delegates were still arriving. bankers took exception to president obama's proposal to rein in big banks. with the arrival of the guest of honor, that debate sharpened. a french president is well known for his impassioned criticism of unfettered capitalism and calls for greater international regulation. he did not disappoint. >> the crisis we are experiencing is not a crisis. is a result of the skewing of capitalism. >> he wholeheartedly agreed with president obama that bankers should not be allowed to engage in speculative trading or expect large bonuses when boom years turned to bust. >> there are remuneration packages that will no longer be tolerated because they have no

relation to merit. what is totally shocking is that they consider it quite right for this to continue when things are not going well. >> president sarkozy made his position clear. of the hall was packed to hear him speak, but not everyone there was a supporter. there was a standing ovation, but it was only patchy. those who remained in their seats were those who were not happy with what he said. outside, heavy security. in years gone by, protesters at the gate or what they were worried about. doubt it is the hard questions being asked inside the forum that are putting them on the spot. the international monetary fund will provide at $114

million of emergency aid to haiti to help them cope with the aftermath of the earthquake. the united nations is asking donors to give cash, not goods. some people have been evacuated to new york to try to rebuild their lives. >> god bless america >> at this catholic school in queens, almost every child has been affected by the earthquake in haiti. 80% of the people there are of haitian descent and they are often sent to live with developers in haiti to get to know the country. best 10-year-old was in port-au- prince -- this 10-year-old was in port-au-prince when the floor beneath him began to move. >> it was so weird and so big. >> he showed me the pictures that he took in the aftermath. he was airlifted out of haiti.

now he is back at the school, reunited with his mother. the earthquake happened at 1,500 miles away. the after effects are being held here in this new york school. some former people are returning, but children's lives have been turned upside down. this girl's school was destroyed by the earthquake. her parents sent her to live with relatives in new york. >> a lot of bad things are happening in haiti. >> earthquakes are now being studied in science class. the school community continues to absorb the impact of what happened in haiti. political leaders in

northern ireland have been given 48 hours to create a deal on the political injustice powers. that is the deadline from british prime minister gordon brown. they have said they will publish their own proposals if there is no agreement. authorities in bangladesh have not executed five soldiers and two were convicted of killing the former leader in 1975. he was killed in a military coup, but one of his daughters was abroad at the time. she returned to become prime minister. honduras has a new president. he has been sworn in after months of political crisis since the coup. he was elected in november and promised national reconciliation. a short while after the inauguration, is ousted predecessor was preparing to leave the country for exile in the dominican republic.

in tree lanka, there was a presidential contest, but his main rival, the former army chief, general fonseka, rejected the results, announcing a legal challenge. for several hours, troops surrounded a hotel used by the general in the capital. he has left the building. >> at night time, general fonseka left the luxury hotel where he had been staying with his opposition colleagues. he sped off, evading attempts to catch his vehicle. it was 24 hours of high tension as the military established a huge presence outside of the hotel, vigorously checking everyone who went in and out. nobody was ready to gauge why the command is were there. authorities said with the general, there were hundreds of military deserters who should surrender or it was just after security to prevent post-

election violence. in the afternoon, the official results came through, a clear victory for president rajapaksa. the election commission said he had one - won 2 million votes more than his rival. the president's many supporters were delighted. many feel he successfully faced down western countries by not seeking to their pleas for a cease-fire in the final on salt -- in the final assault against the tamil tigers. this man said it spoke to the world community. general fonseka came out with a defiant rejection of the results, alleging irregularities in the process, including the misuse of state resources by the president's side. >> it was not done properly.

it we are not accepting the results. -- we are not accepting the results. >> he said he would challenge the results legally. later he said he plans to go abroad as he was losing the security detail and felt he was under threat. it has been a roller coaster in sri lanka. the highly personal and very violent campaign and reasonably peaceful election day, and now anger and defiance from the loser and the display of military muscle from the winner. belgian rescue workers have saved 813-year-old girl from the rubble of an apartment building that collapsed overnight -- a 13-year-old girl from the rubble of an apartment building that had collapsed overnight. dominic's use reports from brussels. >> workers had been searching the apartment after an explosion caused by a suspected gas leak.

the original blast shattered the windows of the town hall 100 meters away. a fire had taken hold, sending thick plumes of smoke into the sky. by the morning, fire crews were still struggling to bring the flames under control. then suddenly this happened. as the front of the building collapsed, rescue workers had to run for cover. dust and burks showered the area. several people are believed to be trapped in the rubble. fire crews have heard at least two people who are still alive. 20 were injured. the city center is closed off as the search for survivors continues. after months of over excitement on the internet and coffeeshops across the globe, apple has unveiled its latest ipad, its first release since the iphone three years ago, used to access the internet on the move and read books,

newspapers, and magazines. it has a tabloid-style touch screen, weighs about 700 grams, and will cost between five. and -- it will cost between five under dollars and $830. -- it will cost between $500 and $830. that is it for "bbc world news." >> funding was made possible by -- the freeman foundation of new york, stowe, vermont, and honolulu, the newman's own foundation, the john d. and catherine t. macarthur foundation, and union bank. >> union bank has put its financial strength to work for a

wide range of companies from small businesses to major corporations. what can we do for you? >> i'm julia stiles. >> i'm kevin bacon. >> i'm kim cattrall. >> hi, i'm ken burns. >> i'm lili taylor. >> i'm henry louis gates jr., and public broadcasting is my source for news about the world. >> for intelligent conversation. >> for election coverage you can count on. >> for conversations beyond the sound bites. >> a commitment to journalism. >> for deciding who to vote for. >> i'm kerry washington, and public broadcasting is my source for intelligent connections to my community. >> "bbc world news" was presented by kcet, los angeles.